BUSAN Transportation Corp. and Edison Development & Construction have qualified as bidders for three Transport Department projects even if their maintenance contract for Metro Rail Transit Line 3 was terminated over its sloppy service and alleged anomalous dealings with the government, an official said Monday.
Rep. Jericho Nograles said Busan and Edison should be held accountable for turning the MRT3 into shambles, but they were the lone bidder for the maintenance of LRT Line 2.
“This is shocking! How can Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade allow this?” Nograles said. “It is basic common sense that Busan and Edison should have been blacklisted from joining any bidding for any government project, especially projects of the DoTr.”
Nograles, quoting Transport Department sources, said the companies behind Busan Universal Rail Inc.”•Busan Transportation Corp. and Edison Development & Construction, “were qualified by the DOTr as eligible bidders for three major DOTr projects despite the fact that the DOTr canceled their contract due to Negative Slippage.”
Edison, a BURI incorporator, is a sole proprietorship of Elpidio Silvestre Uy who failed to declare his ownership stake in BURI to the Bureau of Internal Revenue. Busan, another incorporator of BURI, is a Korean company facing charges as well in a plunder case filed by the DoTr.
“The projects involve the rail replacement of MRT3, the restoration of four LRT2 trains, and, worst of all, is the lone bidder for the LRT2 Maintenance Contract,” Nograles said.
“How can the DOTr even consider qualifying Busan and Edison as bidders for its projects shortly after getting entangled in a scandalous contract for MRT3? Anyone in his right mind would not even touch these two companies with a ten-foot pole under the present circumstances,” Nograles said.
Negative Slippage may be calculated as Total Accomplishment less Actual Accomplishment.
In the case of Busan Transportation Corp. and Edison Development & Construction Corp., DOTr sued these parties for non-performance of a contract with the MRT3 leading to plunder, Nograles said.
The DOTr cited BURI’s poor performance and failure to ensure the availability of contractually obligated number of trains and put reliable and efficient trains as reasons for its action.
It said the company also failed to implement a feasible procurement plan for spare parts. BURI failed to procure and store the required volume of spare parts, which affected its ability to effect immediate repairs on defective trains and other facilities of the MRT-3 system.
The department said BURI also failed to comply with the contractual requirements of a complete and up-to-date computerized maintenance management system.
The department In January 2016 signed a P3.8-billion three-year contract with the joint venture Busan Transportation Corp., Edison Development & Construction, Tramat Mercantile Inc., TMICorp. and Castan Corp. to do maintenance work on the rolling stock and signaling system, the most critical maintenance component of MRT 3.
But BURI said it was confident it would be vindicated from the process of contract termination initiated by the Transport Department.
